Hotels

Buy IHG points with 100% Bonus – 1/2 a penny a point

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100% bonus when you buy IHG points

IHG has brought back their best offer on purchasing points ( $0.005 ) if you make your purchase by 03/21/23. This is a best ever deal price wise however the most you can buy on this deal is 150k pre bonus vs the most we’ve seen being 250k pre bonus points.

I always want to make it clear that you shouldn’t buy points speculatively. Points programs devalue all the time and you only want to seize opportunities like this when you have a booking with award availability and can use the points to lower your check out cost. If that applies… this is a great time to buy price wise.

  • To reiterate, the best ever deal is buy 250k get 250k maxing out at 500k points ( $0.005 per points)
  • This deal is maxed out at 150k get 150k = 300k at $0.005 per point

 

Buy IHG points is currently offering a 100% Bonus

  • Must buy 5k+
  • Max is 150k
  • Price is $0.005
  • Until 03/21/23

Should I buy IHG points?

I think buying points is an excellent way to either shore up your balance, or buy a trip at a cheaper price than you’d pay to stay at a hotel with cash. HOWEVER – don’t do this speculatively. Always have an immediate, or at least near term, use for the points. I wouldn’t advise buying them for some trip down the road that you aren’t looking to book soon.

I just stayed at the Kimpton Sylvan – it was running $250 a night, but with points varied between 26k and 40k. That means I could have purchased points and stayed for between $130 and $200. Even less with and IHG Rewards Premier.

 

Is this the best price?

Yes, if you buy during the promo period with a 100% bonus, you’ll net out at 1/2 of one penny per point. This is the cheapest we’ve seen IHG offer points, but remember, you can always buy points using the Cash + Points trick for 6/10 of one penny.

If you don’t have enough points in your account for a booking, or you don’t wish to use all of your points at that property, IHG will allow you to book that hotel with Cash + Points – the price is usually around $0.006 per point – roughly 20% higher than this deal.

IHG points are dynamic – important

One of the reasons I want to stress that you have a redemption in mind to take advantage of in the immediate future is because IHG award rates fluctuate day to day based on demand and rack rate pricing. For instance, I reported on that Intercontinental Rome was pricing at 40k over Valentines Day 2022 … that didn’t happen, the opening has been pushed to 2023 and rates are well over 80k. Don’t buy on speculation.

What’s the max I can purchase

Usually IHG has a 100k max on the amount of points you can purchase in a year, but has raised it as high as 250k in the past ( pre bonus ). Currently that this deal maxes out at 150k with 100% bonus = 300,000 points for $1,500, or 0.005 per point.

Is this the best deal we’ve ever seen?

Price per point…yes. But the max has been as high as 250k.

Can I have some examples of how to make use of this promo

Sure…the examples I’ll show are merely to illustrate the strategy, and the rates could fluctuate, but the strategy of seeking outsized return remains the same.

Kimpton Seafire Grand Cayman – one of the best Kimpton redemptions around

Let’s look at the Kimpton Seafire in the Cayman Islands on a 1 and 4 day trip.  Whenever you compare rates make sure the cancellation policies are the same. In this case, both the flexible rate and the point rate have the same 4 day cancellation policy. Notice all the taxes added on to the booking brining the total up top $844 – this includes a $80 resort fee + 11% service charge.  When you book with points, you need to pay the $80 resort fee but not the 11% service charge. You could buy the same 70k points for around $350, and with the $80 service fee, your cost would be $430 vs $844.

 

If you had an IHG Rewards Premier card, IHG Rewards Traveler, or IHG Rewards Premier Business you’d get a 4th night free on award bookings. This makes the price reduction even more noticeable. A $3850 stay would drop could be booked for 210k points, or $1050 with this sale. That is amazing, but remember you’d still owe $80 a night in resort fees, so your check out price would be $1430 vs $3850 for 4 night stay. That’s $360 a night vs $960 a night.

Buying points to use a free night certificate

The free night certificate earned from certain IHG credit cards is eligible for top up. What does this mean? In the past, the free night certificates were only valid at properties that priced a night at 40k or below. Now, you can add points to that free night certificate which makes it much more valuable.

If you don’t have the points in your account, it could be valuable to buy what you need to top up your free night to the needed amount of points for the redemption. This could really useful if you’re adding a 5th night for a 4 night reservation.

 

If you had 210k points along with the IHG Premier, and wanted to stay at the Kimpton Seafire you’d have enough for 4 nights. But, what if you wanted to stay 5 and you had your free night certificate sitting in your account? Well, you could purchase 30k IHG points and top it up, and with this deal you’d be paying just $150 for those points.

 

Unlocking the IHG Premier

The IHG Rewards Premier comes with an annual anniversary award night as I mentioned earlier which you’ll be able to top-up. You can use this to stay at properties up to 40k in value. Having a stand alone night can often mean you have to pay for a night to accompany it since many of us won’t just do somewhere for a single night, but soon you’ll be able to pair it with any booking and top up the difference from 40k. Buying points can help offset cost and make better use of your night since you’re more apt to plan a longer stay if you can offset cost.

 Chase IHG PremierLearn More

Starting in late March it will include all of the following benefits:

  • Automatic Platinum Status
  • 4th night free when using points
  • $50 United Travel Bank credit
  • Global Entry/TSA Pre Fee credit every 4 years
  • Free 40k night every year
    • this being on your first anniversary heading into your second year of cardmembership
  • Spend your way to Diamond with $40k in annual purchases
  • Get a 10k bonus points and $100 statement credit when you spend $20k + one additional purchase in a year
  • Earning will be as such:
    • 10x at IHG Hotels & Resorts worldwide ( this is on top of the bonus you get as a IHG Rewards member )
    • 5x
      • travel
      • gas stations
      • dining/restaurants
      • social media and search engine advertising
      • office supply stores
    • 3x everywhere else

Recap

This is a very solid offer if you have reason to buy points and redeem. Crunch the numbers, do your own research, and make the right decision. If you decide to move forward we appreciate you using our links!

Affiliate link via CardRatings

4.8
4.8/5

The Chase Sapphire Preferred is a great starter card that earns Premium Ultimate Rewards that can be transferred into over a dozen partners many of which are US based. 

Welcome Offer

60k Points after $4k spend in 3 months

80k offer in branch currently – I think this should be online soon

Annual Fee

$95

Points Earned

Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards

Super solid welcome offer.

If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex℠and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash , Ink Business Unlimited you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners

Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.

  • 3x on dining
    •  including eligible delivery services for takeout
  • 3x on select streaming services
  • 3x on online grocery purchases
    • (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
  • 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards – Chase Travel Portal
  • $50 Annual Credit on hotel stays purchased via Ultimate Rewards/Chase Travel
    • The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
  • 10% Anniversary Bonus
    • Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
  • Chase Sapphire Preferred® continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel Portal and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including primary rental car insurance, purchase protections, etc.
  • Points are transferrable to 13 Ultimate Rewards partners
  • Redeem in the Chase Travel center for 1.25 cents per point
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
    • Primary rental car coverage is my favorite

There is currently an 80k offer after $4k spend in 3 months available in branch, and up to 90k after $6k spend in 6 months. I suspect some version of this will be online soon if you don’t want the hassle of going into a branch.

We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.

Historically 60k is a very, very good offer. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back. .

Main Cast: 

Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.

Supporting Cast:

Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on. 

13 Comments

  • M N February 14, 2023

    Hey Zach,

    I created an IHG login and only see 80% bonus options. I’ve got an amex platinum & gold if that makes a difference.
    Is there an affiliate link or another way to access the 100%?

    Thanks!

  • Darin December 18, 2022

    This offer is targeted in terms of the bonus level, not everyone will receive the 100% offer that nets .05 per point. My offer is an 80% bonus.

  • […] but that is ridiculously expensive. IHG caps the number of points you can buy per year at 500k ( when the sale is buy 250k bet 250k ) unless you use the IHG Points + Cash trick, or take advantage of the USTA promos once a year. […]

  • Huda September 24, 2021

    I got the American Express gold and the IHG credit card. However, not sure which to pay with. If I pay with IGH it’s 25x point for the hotel but if I pay with the gold I get the $100 resort credit. Super confused

  • Geoff September 2, 2021

    Just saved me $400 at HH Cleveland Clinic. Thank you.

  • greg July 5, 2021

    Nice one, i must say this is a great work. it was helpful and i enjoyed reading.

  • Frank June 9, 2021

    Can I do this deal and then transfer all the points to Chase?

    Also, if all the points go to Chase, can I owe points to United miles (or any other transfer partner)?

    Lastly, can a business apply for an personal IHG credit card and use their EIN to open the account?

    P.S. Miles is Awesome!

    • Frank June 9, 2021

      * can I move points

    • Miles June 9, 2021

      Hey Frank – Love where your head is at but… you can’t move IHG points to Chase Ultimate Rewards, only the other way around. Technically you could move IHG to United at a 5:1 ratio which is terrible and I’d strongly advise against doing this, and you can’t move United into Chase only the other way around. And I believe you must apply with a SSN not an EIN for the IHG Premier. Regarding buying the points – only do so if you can use them at a property to get outsized value. otherwise, I’d hold off

      • Frank June 9, 2021

        Thanks for the reply and the great information (including all your awesome content and insights)!

  • Tom July 8, 2020

    IHG? Wouldn’t be worth it at HALF that price. They cannot be trusted.

    • Miles July 9, 2020

      I wouldn’t throw the baby out with the bathwater, lots of ways to be strategic in purchasing and redemption to find arbitrage if you do some work

      • Margaret June 2, 2021

        Like Naples, Florida at Easter! $3,800 room for 7 nights for 180,000 points. Mostly earned from the postcard promotion from years ago!!!

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